UNCOMMEN: Traffickedنموونە

A Covenant With My Eyes 

Job 31:1 says, "I have made a covenant with my eyes; how then could I gaze at a virgin?”

I've been married to my wife for more than 30 years and dated six years before that. We met each other in the fifth grade and have been together since. Suffice to say I love my wife; I cherish my wife, and I desire my wife. 

We are off to a great start, right?

My wife and I are sitting at a table drinking coffee in a little shop we frequent. We were talking, and out of the blue, my head flips around 180 degrees (like an owl) to look at a woman. I didn't know she was even there 10 seconds before, but something told me to turn my head. She didn't shout my name; there was no noise, just a woman going about her day. I'm sure my wife was a bit offended by it but never said anything. 

After a couple of minutes, I brought up the topic of how strange it is to be hard-wired to be visual. I was enjoying her company and wasn't desiring to look at another woman, but there it was, nonetheless. 

How are we to fight a battle that we don't even know is going on?

We partner with an organization called Covenant Eyes that helps men not filter content, but with accountability. They provide software that notifies your network if you have looked at adult content. You get to choose that network of people who hold you accountable. It's an excellent service and can be applied to your computer and phone. 

As our verse states, "I've made a covenant with my eyes."

We are being bombarded with sexually skewed content, images, and music. So it's not surprising, if our brain goes without that kind of stimulant for too long, that it starts to look for it. So was it my brain's fault for snapping my head around to look at that woman? Partly. My thoughts, my heart, my body, my selfishness, pride, etc. 

It's why we need help from the Holy Spirit to block this type of content from our lives. 

Statistic: According to the anti-trafficking nonprofit Rescue: Freedom, in nine countries, 49 percent of sexually exploited women said that pornography was made of them while they were being sold for sex.

Uncommen questions:

• Do you have something in place to help you through the weak moments of temptation?
• Do you need to make a covenant with your eyes and what you look at daily?

Uncommen challenge:

I challenge you and me to take ownership of our eyes and what we expose them to. Like the nursery rhyme says, "Careful, little eyes what you see." 

Scripture reference: Job 31:1